1 of 6: Welcome to the virtual tour of Beaumaris Castle.
You can walk up to the gatehouse, see the drawbridge come down and
explore the interia area of the castle if you have the
VRML plug-in installed. There are details at the bottom of this
page explaining how to install the plug-in and how to move
around in VRML worlds.
2 of 6: Beaumaris Castle is a concentric castle. A concentric castle has more than one set of walls.
Beaumaris has two sets of walls, an outer and an inner. Both sets of walls are defended by towers at the
corners and at intervals along their length. Both outer and inner sets of walls also have gatehouses.
This meant that if attackers managed to fight their way past the outer walls the defenders in the castle
were still protected by the inner walls. For extra protection the castle is surrounded by a large water filled moat.
3 of 6: The outer gatehouse ....
The only entrance into the castle is via the main gatehouse to the south. There were plans to have a second
entrance to the north but this gatehouse was never completed. If you move towards the gatehouse in the
VRML model the drawbridge will automatically lower to allow you to enter.
4 of 6: If attackers managed to get through the outer gatehouse they were presented with the
problem of getting through an inner gatehouse. This inner gatehouse has two semi-circular
towers, portcullises, gates and a barbican. The barbican was a square walled area just in front
of the main gate. This confined space meant attackers had to congregate in a small area where
they would come under fire from the defenders from many sides.
5 of 6: Beaumaris was an English castle built in Wales and resupplying the castle would
have been impossible over land because the supplies would have been a target for
the Welsh to attack. To overcome this problem a channel to the sea was dug so that
English supply ships could sail right up to the castle. This method was
repeated in may of the English castles built in north Wales.
6 of 6: At the centre of the castle is the inner ward. On all sides of the courtyard were buildings
used for all the main functions necessary to run the castle. This would have included stables,
kitchens and living quarters. To the north and south are two stong gatehouses. The gatehouse
to the north containing a large hall and living quarters for the visiting royalty.
To explore this virtual reconstruction you will require a VRML plug-in. There is a
free plug-in available from ParallelGraphics and is easy to install. Follow the instructions to begin.
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